Karnataka: Muslim child named as 'Shivamani' on Shivakumara Swamiji's 115th birth anniversary

On the occasion of the 115th birth anniversary of Shivakumara Swamiji, the Shivakumara Swamiji Annadana Sewa Trust on the premises of Siddaganga Math held a naming ceremony for 115 children across the state.

Tumakuru(Karnataka):A Muslim couple named their child 'Shivamani' during a naming ceremony held on the occasion of the 115th birth anniversary of Shivakumara Swamiji. The Shivakumara Swamiji Annadana Sewa Trust organised the ceremony on the premises of Siddaganga Math in the Tumakuru district of Karnataka on Friday, wherein 115 children were given names.

Shahista and Zameer, a resident of Kyatsandra in Tumakuru, have named their daughter Shivamani, because of their faith in Shivakumar Swamiji. The couple said, "We follow Shivakumar Swamiji's preachings of equality. We have been following and leading our life on the words of Swamiji. We live our life based on his ideologies."

Dr Shivakumar Swamiji Annadana Seva Trust conducted the naming ceremony(Namkaran or Namakarana Sanskar) for 115 children to commemorate the 115th birth anniversary of Shivakumara Swamiji. Children from various parts of Karnataka including Ramanagara, Bidar and Raichur participated in the ceremony.

Shivakumara Swamiji passed away in 2019 after a long battle with his lung infection in Tumakuru and was a revered seer of the Lingayat faith, hailed as the ‘walking god’. The seer passed away at 111 years old and had been on ventilator support for a few weeks before his demise.

The seer saw to it that the Math he presided over became a shelter home and a center for the learning of many poor students from different parts of the state. He is best known for his philanthropic work, Sri Shivakumara Swamiji was conferred with the third-highest civilian award, Padma Bhushan, in 2015 and the Karnataka Ratna in 2007 for his contribution to society.